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UNSW Snapes On A Plane win QUAFL Cup

by Morgyn Benstead | December 10, 2012

By JAMES HOSFORD
Two weekends ago, the Universi...

By JAMES HOSFORDTwo weekends ago, the University of New South Wales Snapes on a Plane (Sydney, NSW) took Australia's second annual QUAFL National Championship, which also served as the first official IQA Oceania Regional.The UNSW Snapes on a Plane hoist the championship trophy. Photo Credit: Matt Hudson
The fantastic level of growth in Australian quidditch was magnificently showcased, with the tournament expanding from five New South Wales teams in 2011 to ten teams in 2012, including squads from as far as Melbourne, and even Cairns in Northern Queensland and Perth on the Western Australian coast.
Saturday featured the group stage, with the ten teams split into two pools of five. It also notably saw extreme weather, with 37 degree Celsius (98.6 degree Fahrenheit) heat and high humidity. It was a struggle for the players, with the first aid officers well and truly kept busy, but to everyone's credit, ultimately quidditch triumphed over Mother Nature in what was a spectacular day of competitive fixtures.
With the top six teams established, on the teams went to Sunday and up another level everyone stepped. Over the six games of the finals, the quality of play increased exponentially, before an exciting and, to many people expected, final match was set up. The reigning champion UNSW team met the pre-tournament favourites Newcastle Fireballs (Newcastle, NSW,) who struggled Saturday but were flying with the wind in their sails on Sunday.
In a defensively dominated game, UNSW eked their way to a 40-0 lead before the Newcastle Fireballs rallied with three goals of their own. It all came down to the snitch. With UNSW leading 50-30, their seeker Andrew Culf dove into a lake to follow the snitch and come up with the grab. After being written off by many, and after a shaky start which saw them lose their tournament opener to the Melbourne Manticores (Melbourne, Vic,) UNSW had rallied against the odds to successfully defend their title.
Meanwhile, the Australian National Nargles (Canberra, ACT) became inaugural wheelchair quidditch champions with a thrilling win over James Cook University (Cairns, Qld) in an equally popular event.
The tournament was an extraordinary success despite all the weather could throw at the teams, and the more than 150 players who travelled from around the nation made QUAFL 2012 a special weekend. The Player of the Tournament award was given to UWS chaser Chrystal Player, for her excellence on both offense and defense.
RESULTSPOOL A
Macquarie - 140 vs Newcastle - 90*
Sydney - 70 vs Perth - 60*
Newcastle - 120* vs Wollongong - 10
Macquarie - 70* vs Perth - 20
Sydney - 100* vs Wollongong - 10
Newcastle - 120* vs Perth - 70
Macquarie - 170*(130) vs Sydney - 140(130*)
Perth - 70 vs Wollongong - 40*
Sydney - 100* vs Newcastle - 60
Macquarie - 30* vs Wollongong - 0 (forfeit)
POOL A STANDINGS
1. Macquarie - 8 - 63.08%
2. Sydney - 7 - 57.75%
3. Newcastle - 4 - 54.93%
4. Perth - 2 - 42.31%
5. Wollongong - 0 - 15.79%
POOL B
UWS - 100 vs Nargles - 80*
Melbourne - 80* vs UNSW - 50
UWS - 140* vs JCU - 40
UNSW - 90 vs Nargles - 70*
Melbourne - 120* vs JCU - 50
UNSW - 60* vs UWS - 30
Melbourne - 90* vs Nargles - 60
UNSW - 110* vs JCU - 0 (forfeit at 80-0)
UWS - 90* vs Melbourne - 50
Nargles - 30* vs JCU - 0 (forfeit)
POOL B STANDINGS
1. UNSW - 6 - 63.27%
2. UWS - 6 - 61.02%
3. Melbourne - 6 - 57.63%
4. Nargles - 2 - 46.15%
5. JCU - 0 - 18.37%
ELIMINATION FINALS
Melbourne (B3) - 120* vs Sydney (A2) - 20
Newcastle (A3) - 80* vs UWS (B2) - 50
MAJOR SEMI-FINAL
UNSW (B1) - 110*(80*) vs Macquarie (A1) - 90(80)
MINOR SEMI-FINAL
Newcastle - 60* vs Melbourne - 20
PRELIMINARY FINAL
Newcastle - 80* vs Macquarie - 50
GRAND FINAL
UNSW - 80* vs Newcastle - 30
QUAFL 2012 CHAMPIONS: UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES SNAPES ON A PLANE

US Quidditch (USQ) is a magical 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to governing the sport of quidditch and advancing the sport by organizing events and programs that build community and empower all genders to compete together. Inspired by the Harry Potter novels, USQ serves athletes and fans, from sport-lovers to book-lovers and everything in between.